Clasp



UNITED STATES.

ATENT CHARLES MELVIN HILLIKER AND GEORGE WILLIAM HILLIKER, OF CHATEAU- GAY, NEW YORK.

CLASP.

SPEGIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 539,916, dated May 28, 189 5.

' Application filed January 16, 1395. Serial No. 535,132. (No model.)

To all wholn it may concern.-

Beit known that we, CHARLES MELVIN HIL- LIKER and GEORGE WILLIAM HILLIKER, citizens of the United States, residing at Chateaugay, in the county of Franklin and State of New York, have invented a new and'useful Clip or Clasp, of which the following is aspecification.

The invention relates to improvements in clips or clasps.

The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of clips or clasps, and to provide an exceedingly simple and inexpensive one which will have yielding jaws for engaging various objects, and which may betadvantageously employed for sundry purposes, hereinafter fully explained.

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a clip or clasp constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 isa plan view of the same.

Like numerals of reference indicate like parts in both figures of the drawings.

1 designates a clip or clasp constructed of a single piece of spring wire, and consisting of a spring or fulcruming coil 2, a pair of di-' verging handles 3, and similar converging jaws 4. The wire of which the clip or clasp is constructed is centrally coiled,.and, after 3 5 forming the coil, is bent to form, at each end of the coil, a loop, approximately U-shaped in side elevation, to provide the jaw 4:. The jaws are bowed outwardly, and have converging outer portions, and their terminals 5 di- 40 verge to form a slightly flaring mouth or entrance, and to prevent any sharp'points or projections. After forming the j aw-loops, the wire is then bent to form the diverging .handle-loops, and is coiled at the outer extremi- 5 ties thereof, and after being returned to the central or fulcrum coil, is bent around the front of the same, and is continued outward and forward to form diverging extensions or arms 6; The diverging extensions or arms 6 are straight and extend outward from the center of the front side of the coil 2, and are disposed centrally of the jaw-loops, and form yielding engaging portions for the jaws. The extensions or arms 6, and the jaws 4, provide foradouble engagement, and especially adapt the clip for securing oneobject to another, I and for automatically adapting itself to the size of the article held independent of its en gagement with the object or support, to which such article is attached. This double engage- 6o ment will be found especially advantageous when the device is employed as a cow-tail holder. It is adapted to receive the tail of a cow and to engage the tendon of the hind leg of the animal, and it securely engages the tendon with the portions 5, and the extensions or arms 6 automatically adjust themselves to the size of the tail, independent of the engagement of the device with the leg. By this construction a cows tail may be firmly connected to a hind leg of the animal, and it will adjust itself to the size of the leg and the tail.

The 'clip or clasp may be employed for displaying articles in windows, but it is especially adapted for holding the tails'of cows to prevent them switching the milker, and an noying him in that manner, and also to prevent impurities from being switched into the milk. The jaws are adapted to engage the tail'of a cow and thetendon of the hind leg, and this will effectually prevent a cow from kicking or refusing to stand still while being milked.

It will be seen that the clip or clasp is exceedingly simple and inexpensive in construction, that it is constructed of a single piece of wire, and that it is capable of yieldingly engaging an object,

Changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to'without departing from the principle .or sacrificing any of the advantages-of this invention.

What we claim is 1. A clip or clasp constructed of wire and comprising a central coil, a pair of converging jaw-loops, rearwardly-extending handleloops connected to the jaw-loops and adapted to spread the same, and the yieldingly mount- I00 ed diverging extensions or arms located centrally of the j aw-loops and extendingforward from the coil, substantially as described.

2. A clip or clasp constructed of a single piece of wire and consisting of a central coil,

the forwardly-converging U-shaped loops forming jaws and having their outer terminals flared, the handle-loops formingcontinuations of the j aw-loops and diverging and the forwardly diverging extensions formed by continuing the wire of one side of each handle-loop around the front of the coil and extending outward and diverging and providing yielding engaging-arms, substantiallyas de scribed.

In testimony that We claim the foregoing as our own we have hereto affixed our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES MELVIN HILLIKER. GEORGE WILLIAM HILLIKER.

iVitnesses:

GEORGE SABIN, JOHN K. SEAVER. 

